Blue flame is an uncommonly attractive agave that will provide you with an endless supply of free offsets. Here’s everything you need to know about planting and caring for this desert hybrid.
Blue flame agave (Agave x ‘blue flame’) is a medium-sized hybrid of two native agaves. It has waxy blue-green leaves and chalky blue-green leaves that curl inward. The overall effect is said to resemble a gas flame.
It grows in full or part sun. Other than appreciating some afternoon shade, it’s as tough as can be. It can take temperature extremes and needs minimal water.
Blue flame agave is an extremely low-maintenance plant. It grows slowly, doesn’t need pruning, and is essentially litter-free.
Why I Like This Plant
- Looks beautiful all year long
- Takes extreme heat and cold in its stride
- Extremely low-maintenance
- Sends out lots of pups — who doesn’t love free plants?
Things to Watch Out For
Handle your blue flame agave with care. It’s not a particularly spiky agave, but each leaf does have finely serrated edges and a sharp tip. Agaves contain compounds that can cause a rash called agave dermatitis in some people.
Optimal Growing Conditions
If you’re thinking of adding a blue flame agave to your garden, you need to find a suitable place that will keep your plant healthy and looking good… while minimizing maintenance for you.
Here are the key factors to keep in mind.
Temperature
Blue flame agave should be grown in USDA Hardiness Zones 9 – 11. It can take extreme heat up to 115℉ and is cold-hardy down to 20℉.
Sun Exposure
You can plant blue flame agave in full sun or part shade. Unlike many agaves which thrive in full sun all day long, it will be happier with some protection from strong afternoon sun.
Size and Growth Rate
A mature blue flame agave will ultimately reach a size of 3 feet tall by 4 feet wide. It’s a slow-grower that sends up numerous offsets, forming large clumps.
Soil
It’s not particular about soil and grows in any native desert soil, provided it’s well-draining. If the plant stays wet too long, it can develop root rot.
If you plant it in a pot, make sure it has excellent drainage and use specifically formulated cactus soil.
Other Location Considerations
Unless you plan to remove pups as they form, give this agave plenty of room to grow. The parent plant plus pups can create a clump 10 feet across.
Blue flame agave can be grown in a container plant, but with all the pups, it tends to get crowded.
Don’t buy the biggest plant you can find since it only lives about 10 to 15 years. Once the plant has reached the end of its life expectancy, it will send up a huge 15 foot flower stalk and then die.
Blue Flame Agave:
The Essentials
| Common Name | Blue flame agave |
| Scientific Name | Agave x ‘blue flame’ |
| Origin | Sonoran Desert hybrid |
| Plant Type | Evergreen succulent |
| USDA Zones | Zones 9 – 11 |
| Cold Hardiness | To 20℉ |
| Flower Season | Winter, early spring |
| Mature Size | 3’ high x 4’ wide |
| Growth Rate | Slow |
| Sun Tolerance | Full sun, part sun |
| Water Needs | Low |
| Pests & Diseases | Root rot if overwatered |
| Warnings | Contact dermatitis |
| Wildlife | Deer resistant |
How to Plant
Dig a hole as deep as and twice as wide as the nursery container. Carefully remove the plant from the container, put it in the hole and fill with the same native soil you just removed. Press the soil to remove any air pockets.
Never plant deeper than the depth of the root ball which can cause rot. Actually it’s best to plant an inch or two above soil level to give the plant room to settle and leave room for mulch.
It’s generally recommended that you not add amendments to the soil. However, good drainage is critical so if your soil drains slowly, amend with coarse sand or small gravel until you have a loose, well-drained mix.
When to Plant
The best time to plant your agave is in April or May when warm soil temperatures encourage root development.
How to Care for Blue Flame Agave
Whether you’ve recently planted an agave or have an existing plant in your yard, here’s how to take care of it to keep it healthy and looking its best.
How to Water
You’re probably used to giving a plant a good soaking immediately after transplanting, but that isn’t the best practice with agaves.
Counterintuitively, it’s best to not water agaves for one to two weeks after planting. Then use the following schedule as a guide.
| Spring & Fall | Every 3-5 weeks |
| Summer | Every 2-4 weeks |
| Winter | Only if no winter rains |
If you do need to water during the winter, don’t water if there are freezing temperatures in the forecast.
Frequent watering will make an agave grow larger, faster. This might sound like a good thing, but it causes your plant to reach the end of its life span sooner.
Should You Fertilize?
There is no need to fertilize blue flame agave. These plants get all the nutrients they need from the surrounding desert soil.
But if you keep it in a pot, fertilize lightly a few times a year when it’s actively growing.
How to Prune
Occasionally removing dead or damaged lower leaves is the only pruning this plant needs.
Pests
The agave snout weevil is an insect that can attack any agave, but fortunately, smaller agaves like blue flame are less susceptible.
Don’t Confuse Blue Flame Agave With…
Blue flame agave is often confused with agave ‘blue glow’, another hybrid of Agave attenuata.
Blue flame is a much larger plant which has a more curvy appearance and produces a plethora of pups. Blue glow is considerably smaller (2′ x 3′), has stunning red and gold margins, and rarely produces offsets.
Plant Lover Facts
Blue flame agave is a hybrid cross between two native agaves, Agave shawii and Agave attenuata.
Agave attenuata, or fox tail agave, is a Sonoran Desert native from Mexico. It is an attractive landscape plant, but is not cold-hardy. You can expect this plant to show obvious damage once the temperature drops below 28℉.
Agave shawii is native to coastal southern California. Its gift to this mix is its cold tolerance since it’s cold-hardy down to 25℉.
Did you enjoy this article?
Sign up for our weekly newsletter
where you’ll find more great info on creating &
maintaining a beautiful, carefree desert landscape.
Author Bio
Deane Alban is the creator of Southwest Gardener. She is a science writer with a bachelor’s degree in botany from the University of South Florida. Gardening is her lifelong passion. She’s been gardening in Tucson for 15 years.
